Alfred Molina
| birth_place = Paddington, London, England, UK | death_date = | death_place = | other_names = | occupation = Actor | years_active = 1978–present | spouse = Jill Gascoine (1986–present) | website = }} Alfred Molina (born 24 May 1953) is a British American actor. He first came to public attention in the UK for his supporting role in the 1987 film Prick Up Your Ears. He is well known for his roles in Raiders of the Lost Ark, Spider-Man 2, Species, Not Without My Daughter, Chocolat, Frida, Steamboy, The Hoax, [[Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time (film)|''The Prince of Persia:The Sands of Time]], ''[[The Da Vinci Code (film)|''The Da Vinci Code]], ''Little Traitor, An Education and The Sorcerer's Apprentice. Early life Molina was born Alfredo Molina in Paddington, London. His father, Esteban, was a Spaniard from Madrid who worked as a waiter and chauffeur, while his mother, Giovanna, was an Italian house-keeper who cleaned rooms in a hotel and worked as a cook. Molina grew up in a working class neighbourhood in Notting Hill that was inhabited by many other immigrant families.Hispanic Magazine.com - July/August 2004 - Alfred Molina - Cover Story He decided to become an actor after seeing Spartacus at the age of nine, and attended the Guildhall School of Music and Drama. Career In 1978, Molina starred with Leonard Rossiter in the sitcom The Losers. Molina made his film debut with a minor role in the 1981 movie Raiders of the Lost Ark as Indiana Jones' ill-fated guide during its iconic opening sequence. However, his big break came with Letter to Brezhnev in 1985, which he followed up with a starring role in Prick Up Your Ears in 1987, playing Joe Orton's lover Kenneth Halliwell. He was originally cast as Arnold Rimmer in the TV sitcom Red Dwarf, however, he was replaced by Chris Barrie. Molina starred in the first two series of El C.I.D. but left to concentrate on his film work. Subsequent films included Species, Dudley Do-Right, Chocolat, Not Without My Daughter, and Enchanted April. With a flawless mid-western American accent, Molina starred alongside Betty White in the US television series "Ladies Man", which ran from 1999–2001. He has worked twice with Paul Thomas Anderson, first in Boogie Nights and then Magnolia. In 2002, Molina gained wide recognition for his portrayal of Mexican muralist Diego Rivera alongside Salma Hayek in the biopic Frida, a role which garnered him BAFTA and SAG award nominations. In 2003, he played himself alongside Steve Coogan in Coffee and Cigarettes. In 2004, Molina gained further commercial recognition when he was cast as the villain Doctor Octopus in Spider-Man 2, which went on to become one of the highest-grossing films of that year. He later reprised his role of Doctor Octopus in the video game adaption of Spider-Man 2 and archive footage of Molina as Doctor Octopus is seen in the opening of Spider-Man 3. In 2006, Molina portrayed Touchstone in Kenneth Branagh's film version of Shakespeare's As You Like It and appeared in Ron Howard's adaptation of The Da Vinci Code. Molina provided the voice of the villain Ares in the 2009 animated Wonder Woman film. Molina's stage work has included two major Royal National Theatre productions, Tennessee Williams' The Night of the Iguana (as Shannon) and David Mamet's Speed the Plow (as Fox). In his Broadway debut, Molina performed in Yasmina Reza's Tony Award-winning play 'Art', for which he received a Tony nomination in 1998. In 2004, Molina returned to the stage, starring as Tevye in the Broadway production of Fiddler on the Roof. For his performance he once again received a Tony Award nomination, this time for Best Actor in a Musical. Molina received his third Tony Award nomination for "Red" in 2010, for Best Performance by a Leading Actor in a Play. In 2007, Molina narrated a 17-part original audiobook for Audible.com called The Chopin Manuscript. This serialized novel was written by a team of 15 best-selling thriller writers, including Jeffery Deaver, Lee Child, Joseph Finder and Lisa Scottoline. On 1 April 2010, he opened at Broadway's John Golden Theater in the role of artist Mark Rothko in John Logan's drama Red opposite Eddie Redmayne for a limited engagement through June 27. He had played the role to much critical success at the Donmar Warehouse in London in December 2009. In 2010 he starred opposite Dawn French in the six-part BBC sitcom Roger & Val Have Just Got In.Molina stars opposite Dawn French http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/8256871.stm He is the only actor to have three Lego Minifigures modelled after him, with them being Doctor Octopus from Spider-Man 2, Satipo from Raiders of the Lost Ark and Sheik Amar from Prince of Persia. In July 2010, it was announced that Molina had joined the cast of Law & Order: Los Angeles as Deputy District Attorney Morales. Personal life Molina resides in Los Angeles and has become a U.S. citizen. He is fluent in Spanish. He married actress Jill Gascoine in 1986 in Tower Hamlets, London. He has a daughter, Rachel (born 1980), from a previous relationship, and two stepsons (Adam and Sean), from Gascoine's first marriage. He is also a grandfather to Alfie (born November 2003) and Layla (born May 2006). Filmography References External links * * * * Alfred Molina interviewed on Downstage Center XM Radio at American Theatre Wing, November 2004 * Working in the Theatre: Performance video seminar at American Theatre Wing, April 1998 * Q&A: Alfred Molina Category:1953 births Category:Living people Category:Alumni of the Guildhall School of Music and Drama Category:American film actors Category:American stage actors Category:American television actors Category:American people of Italian descent Category:Hispanic and Latino American people Category:English immigrants to the United States Category:American actors of English descent Category:Audio book narrators Category:American voice actors Category:English film actors Category:English people of Italian descent Category:English people of Spanish descent Category:English stage actors Category:English voice actors Category:English television actors Category:Italian British actors Category:Naturalized citizens of the United States Category:People from Paddington Category:Royal National Theatre Company members Category:Royal Shakespeare Company members Category:Shakespearean actors Category:English musical theatre actors Category:Drama Desk Award winners ar:ألفريد مولينا bg:Алфред Молина cs:Alfred Molina da:Alfred Molina de:Alfred Molina es:Alfred Molina fa:آلفرد مولینا fr:Alfred Molina id:Alfred Molina it:Alfred Molina hu:Alfred Molina nl:Alfred Molina ja:アルフレッド・モリーナ no:Alfred Molina pl:Alfred Molina pt:Alfred Molina ru:Молина, Альфред sq:Alfred Molina sr:Алфред Молина fi:Alfred Molina sv:Alfred Molina tr:Alfred Molina